Just when you decide to do something different for your 50^th and register for your first ultra- marathon, multi day event, then you realize your body’s  falling apart. Your mind is screaming “Oh no! Not now!” In my case a knee injury has forced me to stop training for 6 weeks. I had to tell myself to stay positive. It will get better. With rest and physiotherapy, things are beginning to pick-up again and hopefully I’ll be ready for that long march. For now, “so far so good”.

In the last month or so, while resting my knee, I kept myself busy on completing the equipment list. Choosing and finding the right sleeping bag was certainly a chore. Considerations were the type (down or synthetic), the weight and the cost. Down filled sleeping bag was what I settled for. There were many brands in the market. I did research and read some experts’ advice and the more I read the more difficult it was to decide on one. The light weight ones of 600-650gms were of premium price. At the end, I found one of 750gms that was affordable.  Then there’s the mattress. It being a nice to have item, to get or not to get, that was the question. It’s extra weight, I thought. But sleep is important. More than anything else, I wanted one for the insulation.  I settled for a short one of 180gms. I decided to throw in the silk liner which was 115gms, in case it gets colder than expected. The bag!!! I picked the OMM25L from the RtP store and added 2 bottle holders that adapt to the shoulder straps. I will not be using a water reservoir (or bladder) as I previously planned and decided on carrying bottles (X4) instead. A water reservoir would be inconvenient and time consuming to refill. The sticks??? I’m not really sure if I’ll need them but I got myself a pair anyway. 220gms for the pair.  All items on the mandatory list are present and accounted for except the food. I figure that the food I will need or any consumables will weigh roughly 5KG. The bag, equipment, clothing and extras, maybe another 4Kg. That’s 9kg without the water. EeeeK, this calls for serious weight management.  I’m supposed to be an experienced traveler but often times I end up with unnecessary weight coz, I figure, it’s going to end up in the cargo hold anyway. This time, it’s no joke, I’m carrying it. To date the most I have trained with is 5kg. I think… No, I know and am confident that I will train with 9-10kg progressively in the 2.5 months coming. That’s the goal.

As I planned, I did the 50KM in 3days twice in February (around 17KM each day). For the first 3day one, I carried 1-2KG weight in my backpack. Running with the extra weight was still manageable. On the second 3day training, I increased the weight to 5KG. I was carrying a bag of rice in my back pack. It was difficult to maintain a running pace so the pace was more of a hike & jog. The side effect of training with all that weight was considerably different to any other endurance training I’ve ever done. In all ultra training/competition I’ve done, the most weight I’ve carried was no more than 3 kilos, mostly water, which gets reduced as the event progresses. Muscle strain in the shoulder/neck, the back and notably in the chest. OMG, all that muscle strain in the upper body made it difficult to breath after the third day. My post-training stretching session was longer than usual. I was Ok after 2 days.

My left knee has been acting up for a couple of months now. I’ve had to modify my training and put more time and effort to doing core strengthening exercise. It’s not enough to hit the trails all the time.  I’ve gone back to using my rubber ball, elastic cord, rubber mat and target the abdominals, back, gluts, quads. Am using weights for the arms and shoulders and also, I do some of my favorite yoga poses.  I’ve put the trails on hold for a while. When I return, it will be more of power hikes this time.

In my last blog I would have wanted to include the equipment that I have seen, but was interrupted by this, that and another. Anyway, I started window shopping at shops and online from the largest items to the smallest that is required. Main concern, of course, was weight. The lighter they were the prizier. The first thing to get will be “The Bag” and train with it asap. I looked at clothing, sticks, camping material, hygiene stuff, sleeping bags and mattresses. Food is another big concern and after calculating the 2000cal per day X 7 days, I figure I will have to carry 4-5KG for the entire event.

I attended the information night provided by Racing the Planet on the 23Feb. Mostly, what caught my attention was equipment and food. I thought, what was suggested for the bag was a sensible option after thinking of getting a 2pc system (25lt on the back plus 4 in front).  An all-in-one bag with pouches on the waist strap to store snacks for the day is the way to go for me. For hydration, different options were suggested. I quite like the idea of carrying 2, 750ml bottles, on the shoulder straps and they had what’s needed to hold the bottles in place on the straps. Food tasting was interesting. It’s the first time for me to taste complete meals in dehydrated or freeze dried form. I enjoyed the tikka  & beef stew. It got me thinking of planning my daily breakfast and snack. Quick oats is my favorite.  I’ll just throw in few dried fruit & nuts to make it interesting. Instant noodles will be an alternative. Bars, dried fruits, salty nuts, salty corn chips, salty biscuits are some of the snacks I’m thinking of packing. Got to plan how to prepare and repack all that in a sensible way to keep the weight of the bag down. Recovery drink was also mentioned and suggested at the end of each trek. Hydration salts and salt tablets was also covered.  Looking into all that as well.